Of Mistletoe & Wanton Soup
by LoriDeux
Summary: Somewhere in Whoville, the Grinch is looking at her like a proud father, watching as her tiny heart grows ten times its size. For Drasticity.


_**Merry Christmas baby**_

_**Sure do treat me nice**_

_**You bought me all those good ole presents**_

_**I love you, baby, rest of my life**_

-.-.-.-

"You look disgusting."

Okay. So maybe it's not the nicest way to start a conversation with someone who obviously doesn't feel all that great, but if there's one thing Jade West has always prided herself in, it's her determination to be completely honest and express all her opinions. Unless she _has_ to lie and/or hide them for a greater purpose, but like, that's acceptable, because it is a 'Dog eat Dog' world out there, and there is no way in Hell she's getting eaten.

Unless it's by Beck, of course.

However, there's snot basically blocking his airways at the moment, so that's _so_ not going to happen right now.

Obviously.

"Thanks, honey," he replies sarcastically, though it lacks any force because his voice is muffled and all but gone due to the cold he's been trying to fight off for the past two days. He's lying down in his miniscule bed, wearing gray sweats and an old UCLA sweatshirt his brother gave him the last time he came home. His hair is basically running wild around his head, and thick socks are wrapped around his feet as he tries to keep warm in his ridiculously cold RV. His usually tan skin looks clammy and pale, and his nose is red from blowing it so much.

"Don't use that tone with me," she chides him, before shuddering when her body resents the low temperatures inside her boyfriend's mobile home. The winds from Hell seem to be hitting Los Angeles at the moment, and the material the RV's made of does nothing but contain the coldness inside. "Ugh, I swear, this place is like the Exorcist's room. Why haven't you turned on the heater?"

"It broke last week," he coughs out, pulling a blanket tighter around him and curling his body around himself to capture its heat. Odd, since Beck is like, the warmest person she's ever met. Sometimes she wonders if he comes with some sort of inner-installed heater built into his body or something. Seriously, it feels delicious to run her hands over his body when she's feeling cold, and the way he shivers at her touch is just a bonus. "What are you doing here? You're going to miss your performance."

"You were supposed to take me to pick up my outfit, remember?" she asks him, noticing the way his breathing seems uneven and raspy. "Do you want me to stay here with you instead?"

"No," he sniffs, before blowing his nose in one of napkins sitting beside the side of his bed. "You worked hard for it. Go, have fun, I'll be okay."

"You sure?" she asks, hesitant.

"Yeah, I'm fine, promise. Just a little cold," he reassures her, before a smile forms on his face. "You know, a kiss might make me feel better," he adds, puckering his lips out at her and spreading his arms wide in invitation.

"Yeah, that's not gonna happen," she retorts, taking a step backwards and towards the door to emphasize her point. "I'll be back later, don't die while I'm gone," she says as she walks out, making sure to close the door behind her so no one will bother him and he can get some rest.

She's back half an hour later, armed with half a dozen different colored bags and two boxes.

Jade walks inside to find Beck fast asleep, resembling a little kid so much that it makes something inside of her ache at the fact that she knows he's hurting. She quietly closes the door behind her, not wanting to wake him up just yet and places the bags she's carrying on his desk.

Then, she gets to work.

The first thing she does is take out the mini heater she bought and plugs it into the outlet next to his bed. It's kind of stupid to think anything else she does will work if he's stuck in a room that's approximately twenty degrees below zero. Five minutes later, she can feel as the temperature starts rising and getting to at least a tolerable level. Next, she pours the Wanton Soup she got for him at Nozu into a bowl and sticks it in his microwave, taking the time to place a box of Kleenex (three ply, of course) beside his pillow. It's not until the timer on his food beeps that she actually wakes him up.

Sitting next to him on his bed, she rubs his shoulder softly before moving her hand down his back, repeating the motion, coaxing him awake and he takes a deep breath as his dazed mind (even more than usual, which is an astounding feat on itself) tries to regain its focus. Beck blinks a couple of times before his eyes land on her and he gives her a lazy smile. It's sweet, and Jade momentarily forgets that he's sick, leaning down to press a kiss to his lips. Her mouth is approximately ten centimeters away from his when he turns his face sideways and covers his mouth with his arm as he goes into a uncontrollable coughing spam.

So. Gross.

"How'd the show go? It seems like it's early," he says after, and his brown eyes widen in disbelief when he reads the clock that's flashing eight o' seven in big, bright numbers. "Wait, what are you doing here? You're missing the show!"

"Eh, I'm too cool for that anyways. Sikowitz can find someone else for all I care," she answers him, trying to sound as nonchalant as she possibly can. Just because she's worried about him and wants to take care of him, doesn't mean he has to know it. Like, what if he starts _expecting_ her to always play the sweet, caring, and lovable girlfriend?

Scary thought right there.

"But you were so excited for it. You kept practicing your song for the Christmas Carols Jam," he presses, staring at her as if trying to figure out what would prompt her to ditch something she wanted so much to stay here with him instead. It kind of pisses her off how he can't deduct that _maybe_, just maybe, she cares _more_ about making sure he's okay.

Of course, he doesn't remember she does these kinds of things for him when he throws the fact that she gave him a can of lemonade for his birthday in her face.

He's so oblivious (she'll refrain from calling him an idiot at the moment because he's sick and has some sort of acceptable excuse) sometimes that it hurts.

Seriously, last time she does something nice for him.

"Did you seriously think I was going to go sing for a bunch of losers I don't like while you're here, holed up sick inside your RV?" she questions him, making her annoyance obvious. She glares at him and crosses her arms, looking away from him and reading the signs hanged on his wall to make ignoring him easier.

Beck takes this time to scan the room, taking notice of all the little changes she's made while he slept. "Aww, babe," he sighs, and there's like this giddy edge to his voice as he speaks, despite the harshness of his tone due to his cold and sore throat. "You _do_ care!"

"Whatever," she dismisses, waving her hands at him and motioning for him to move. "Don't let it go to your head. Now, sit up so you can eat the soup I brought you," she orders, and he does as he's told.

"You going to feed me?" he asks, wiggling his eyebrows at her as he leans against a mountain of pillows and pats his hands on the scrunched up blanket that's now resting on his legs. Jade comes back holding the steaming bowl and retakes her place beside him, and she's decidedly too tempted to drop the contents of it on his head for being such a smartass, so she places it down carefully on his lap and moves her hands away, folding them behind her back..

Removing temptations and all that.

"Yeah, that's not going to happen," she retorts, rolling her eyes when he points at his mouth with his finger, you know, right before he pouts at her and runs his fingers up and down the exposed skin of her arm. As if she was ever _that_ weak. "Don't push it, Oliver, or you'll be wearing that soup instead."

Normal people would've shut up, terrified, and done as told.

But, of course, he laughs.

At least he does as he's told after he's finished laughing.

When his bowl is empty, she takes it and drops it on the tiny sink that constitutes his 'kitchen' and grabs a bottle of Honey & Lime tea, along with a box of Nyquil tablets, before coming back to his side and handing them over. Beck nods his thanks to her before gratefully accepting her offered remedies and it's not until he's struggling to open the box (because he is that much of a dork) that he realizes something.

"This box is brand new," he signals at the wrapping before looking back up at her. "How'd you get them to sell you this? It's illegal for you to buy pills if you're under eighteen."

Jade arches an eyebrow at him. "Do you seriously think something like that was going to keep me from getting what I wanted?" she asks him, daring him to contradict her or name an instance in which she didn't end up getting what she wanted (school aside). "Bitch tried to get all 'high and mighty' on me; took me all of two minutes to finish my checkout," she smirks, remembering the conversation she had and taking a moment to bask in just how awesome she is.

Seriously, she should write a book to share her amazingness with the world.

Maybe then people wouldn't be so annoying and she could finally get some peace.

"Oh, God," he coughs out. "What'd you do to the poor cashier?"

"Nothing," she replies immediate, giving him her best 'innocent' look and smiling in a way that anybody who didn't know Jade West would consider 'bashful'. Her eyes are wide and so crystal blue that it's easy to get lost in them; easily to believe the girl they belong to would never _dare_ to say a lie. Beck, however, is an expert on his girlfriend and her antics, and knows _that_ expression, in specific, means nothing but _trouble_.

"Jade," he repeats, and there's a warning in his voice. It's his typical, 'I'm not joking and you're being bad, Jade' tone. It annoys the hell out of her. Okay, so it makes her want to tear his pretty hair out of his head, if she's being completely honest.

"Whatever," she huffs, leaning back against the wall, but never away from him.

Beck leans his head towards her, resting it on her shoulder. His hand searches for hers, and he intertwines their fingers together, bringing them to his lap. "Thank you," he speaks out, pressing a kiss to her shoulder, wishing desperately he could kiss her, but not wanting to get her sick. A smile forms on Jade's face, and she drops her head just enough so that it's pressing softly against his.

"You're lucky I love you."

"So lucky," he answers, but unlike previous times, there's no sarcasm in his voice. It's honest and sincere and Jade thinks that it _just_ might feel better and make her heart flutter more than the first time he told her he loved her. Somehow, that little admission hits close to home and she has to swallow down the tears that well up in her eyes and the emotions that close up her throat.

Enough of the sentimentality.

"Hold on," she tells him, leaving his side to grab a couple of DVDs from one of the bags she brought. She sticks the disk into his TV and crawls back into bed, taking the same sitting position she was in before. Beck doesn't, though, and instead lays down, resting his head on her lap and snuggling into a pair of blankets as he gets comfortable.

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas?" he asks when the movie starts playing, sighing in content when he feels Jade pulls the rubber band from his hair and begin to run a path through it. Her fingers are soft and soothing, and Beck feels as his body begins to relax under her ministrations and the effects of the medicine.

"We're two days away from Christmas, and this is as close to a Holiday flick as I'm getting," she defends herself. "Plus, he was a badass all the way until he caved and became all cheery. Then he just got annoying."

"Only my girl would complain and dislike the Grinch for growing a heart and finding Christmas spirit."

"And don't you forget it."

Beck laughs, before grabbing her free hand and pulling it to his chest. They both pay attention to the movie after that, and Jade's almost fallen asleep when his voice calls out to her.

"Jade," he asks. "You want to know something?"

"Depends, can I use it as blackmail?" she teases him.

"In more ways than you can imagine," is his response. "You know, I finally found out what I'm scared."

This captures her attention.

"Oh, do tell," she encourages him, but the smile drops when he holds both her wrists in his hands and turns his body so he's facing up to her, seeing as he's still resting in her lap. "What's wrong," she questions, as her eyebrows scrunch up in worry.

"I was afraid we we're really through," he admits. "I think I had a panic attack when Thanksgiving passed by and I realized we still weren't back together. All I could think about was how I wasn't going to get to kiss you under the mistletoe, or at midnight on New Year's. I couldn't believe it, and I couldn't believe I wasn't doing anything about it."

"Why didn't you?" she whispers, her voice caught up in her throat as her heart pounds a mile a minute. She's both fascinated and terrified to know his answer. Right now, fear's pretty much beating out her curiosity.

"Because I'm an idiot," he supplies, and apologetic smile on his face, and Jade has to return it. She smiles, and then she starts laughing, and somehow, she can't stop. His answer is so simple, so basic, and there's so much more they both still need to say that it's almost indignant how _true_ it sounds.

Of course it's not the only truth, but for right now, it's enough.

Because it's two days until Christmas, and she's with the boy she loves. His present is waiting to be opened under the mini tree (that's still way too big for his RV) they decorated together, and hers is resting by its side. She's cuddled up in bed, taking care of him and watching Christmas movies, and against all odds, she's happy. For tonight, none of it matters.

Somewhere in Whoville, the Grinch is looking at her like a proud father, watching as her tiny heart grows ten times its size.

Fuck, she has to take a break from the feel-good movies.

"Yes, you are," she accepts. "But, I guess I kind of like you that way."

"Good, because I love you. And, I can totally work with you not liking me, but it _does_ make my life easier if you at _least_ like me."

"I'm in love with an idiot," she states, before grabbing a pillow from behind her back and smacking him with it, effectively killing their melancholic mood.

"Hey," he protest, "I'm sick! You can't hit a sick person! It's cruel!"

"Yeah, well, you were getting too sappy. Seriously, man up, dude," she scolds him, but she's smiling the entire time and she throws the pillow away from her so she can get back to running her fingers through his hair. "Now, shut up and let me hear my movie."

It's not until the ending credits begin to roll and she's ninety-seven percent sure he's asleep that she hears his voice again. It's soft and low, and Jade knows the pills finally kicked in and he's fighting his body's need to sleep.

"Jade, you're my bestest present," he murmurs, pressing a kiss to her leg before completely drifting off to sleep. Tomorrow, when he's awake and feeling better, she'll get him back for it. Jade bites her tongue and keeps her comments about his bad grammar and about the fact that, um, hello, she's her own person and she is _not_ his property to herself. Especially since everybody knows that there's a part of her that Beck does, in fact, own.

Her heart.

-.-.-.-

This is my entry for the gift exchange.

Drasticity, I hope you liked it!

Everyone else, don't forget to review!


End file.
